Radio program selecting apparatus



May 4, 1943.

c. HORTON RADIO PROGRAM SELECTING APPARATUS Filed Dec. 15, 1940 3 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. Charles Horfon BY Q, a. L Q

Ans.

May 4, 1943. .c. HORTON RADIO PROGRAM SELECTING APPARATUS 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Dec. 15, 1.940

WAAT

WABC

WHN

MONDAY OCT. 2| I940 |lllll INVENTOR. Char! ea Horion/ BY (#99 V L5 A H ticular Patented May 4, 1 943 2,318,312 RADIO PROGRAM SEIECTING APPARATUS Charles Horton, Ridgefleld Park, N. 1.

Application December 13, 1940, Serial No.

6 Claims.

This invention is concerned with improvements in apparatus'by means of which adjustable anof possible settings. An object of this invention is the provision of a combination including a radio set and a staday may be quickly and easily selected from the program book even though it may contain a very large number of possible selections. 4

A still further object of this invention is the nection with the attached drawings.

This invention resides substantially in the combination, construction, arrangement-and relative location of parts, all in accordance with this disclosure.

In the accompanying drawings,

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a combination inaccordance with this invention;

Figure 2 is a plan view of a program book or pamphlet constructed in accordance with this invention and shown closed; 1

Figure 3 is a planview or a modified form of program book or pamphlet in accordance with this invention shown open;

Figure 4 is a plan view of another form of the subject matter of this invention showning, in combination, a remote control board for a radio receiving set and a program book or pamphlet operatively associated therewith and shown open;

Figure 5 is a top plan view ofthe control board of Figure 4 with some portions thereof broken away; and

Figure 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken on the line 66 of Figure 5.

The everyday operation of radio receiving sets, whether they be of the manually controlled type, the automatically or push-button controlled type, or combinations thereof, is burdensome, and in many cases unsatisfactory because of the difficulty or adjusting the receiver to receive a parlarge number of programs available in a day or a week. This 'difliculty is added to by reason of the fact that'it is not a simple matter to remember the wavelengths or frequencies of operation of the large number of stations available so as to be able to translate the published program data into usable form. The complexity of the situation is increased, of course, by the fact that program at a particular time from the each particular station broadcasts a large numberoi' programs in any time period, as for example a day or week, and a particular station may transmit as many as four diflerent. programs in one hour at fifteen minute intervals. In the case of children and unskilled persons including, ose who do not read easily, it is so as to be able to enjoy a particular program. In the light of these facts, it may be stated to be an object of this invention to provide an apparatus by means of which anyone is greatly aided in the'accurate adjustment of a-radio receiver to a particular program at a particular time.

tate the proper adjustment of radio receivers as to render more effective the object of broadcasting, that is, the dissemination of knowledge, information and entertainment. At; the present time it is a common practice for radio set owners to adjust them on a haphazard basis, with the idea in mind of seeing what they can get. There are available each day many worth while pro grams which are not enjoyed because of the difliculty of learning of them and securing the invention which will be referred to later.

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 of the drawings, there is shown in a diagrammatic way for the purpose of general illustration a radio receiving set I. This set is provided, as is usual with radio receivers, with a suitably graduated dial 2 provided with an indicator or hand 3, by the aid of which it is possible through the operation of proper controls to tune the radio receiver to the reception of a program of a particular wave-length. As illustrated in the drawings, the radio receiver includes a set of control knobs or handles 4, 5 and 6, which for purposes of illustration may be defined respectively as the Another object of the invention is to so faciliadjustthe receiver to receive blocked area 1 corresponding united together by any suitable form of binding, as for example the now frequently used wire coil 9. As illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, the pages of the book or pamphlet 8 ar cut away, as indicated at l0. so as to provide which is shaped like or substantially the receiver so that when the book or pamphlet is applied to the receiver as indicated in Figure l the dial is exposed to view through the opening Ill. The receiver, of course, is constructed in any suitable manner so as to receive the book and support it in this position.

When opened, any pair of exposed pages contain the data with respect to the broadcast on a particular day at a particular hour or fraction thereof. Thus as illustrated in the drawings the book 8 is shown opened for the programs to be broadcast at 9 p. m. on October 23, 1940, which is a Wednesday. This data has been respectively indicatedby the reference numerals l3, l4 and I5. These pages contain blocked-01f areas ll, one for each of the principal stations whose data is to be recorded in the book. Each block is designated as indicated at I2 by the call letters of the particular stations. blocked-off areas there is intended to be printed the information with respect to the program for that station for that particular time.

The various blocked-off areas H are connected by symbols or leads I! which extend to the opening Iii in the book at a point opposite the point on the dial 2 at which the pointer 3 will rest when the receiver is tuned to receive the programs of the stations of the connected areas. For example, as shown in Figure 1, the receiver is adjusted for the program of station be apparent,

receiver to this position was, as will greatly facilitated by reason of the invention herein disclosed with the book applied to the receiver as shown. It is possible to very quickly the program of station WHN by merely moving the pointer 3 opposite to the end of the symbol or leader I! extending from the blocked area representative of station WHN to the edge of the opening l0. By observing the information in the blocked area of station WHN, a person may know exactly what program will be broadcast by that station at 9 p. m. onOctober 23, 1940.

hours and fractions thereof of the same day and for other days for a given period of time, as for example a week. These pamphlets, of course, may be profitably prepared and distributed at no cost by reason of the fact that they provide a very effective medium for advertising not only the programs themselves but the products of the sponsors of the programs.

It will be noted from Figure 1 that each it contains a symbol in the form of circles i whichare so positioned that each circle is over one of the push-button controls of the receiver. Thus, after turning on the set, if a person wishes to receive the program of, say, station WJZ, he need only apply pressure to the book or pamphlet within the area of the circle to WJZ in order to cause automatic tuning of the receiver to the wavelength of that station. It is, of course, apparent that 4 thebook or pamphlet should nothave stiff covers but they should be soft and flexible so that the pressure applied at any one point will not cause the operation of the push -buttons'for other stations.

In these WHN, as indicated by the pointer 3. The adjustment of the In the book or pamphlet there are provided similar pages for other programs to be 76 clearly shown in Fig re 'would be extremely difilcult to in practical form which would fit this tion could be the, edges so as to a flexible covering The same general idea is illustrated in Figure 3, wherein in this case the book 26 is shown as provided with a rectangular opening 24 shaped to fit radio receivers of a type having an elongated dial over which the indicating pointer moves laterally in a straight line, back and forth. The book or pamphlet is composed of pages hingedly connected by the spring binding 2| and is provided with a series of blocked areas 22 in which the program data for the different stations for a particular hour of a particular day may be recorded. This book or-pamphlet would to a radio receiver of a shape to accommodate it, and the operation would be similar to that previously described. This construction is likewise of the type that can be applied to a push-button control radio of which there are now a number commonly in use where the push-buttons are arranged in a bank. The

leaders or pointers 23 extending from the various blocked areas would lie opposite the correspondthereby indicating which one be operated to get a program of. the station, the data with respect to which is printed in the blocked area associated with that particular leader.

4, 5 and 6 there is illustrated an the novel subject matter of this invention to a control board 30 by means of which a radio in accordance with well known constructions of this type. This application ofthe novel idea of the invention is of more practicability than those previously desc bed in that the remote control unit could be applied to all types of radio receivers, regardless of their physical construction. It is, of course, well known that radio receivers in physical construction so that it provide a book or pamphlet wide variety of receivers.

In accordance with the construction of Figures 4 to 6, inclusive, however, the control board, which could be purchased either with a receiver or as an adjunct thereto, would be uniform in therefore, at relatively small subject matter of the invenfor use with all construction and, expense, the novel made available radio receivers of trol unit, in accordance with sists of a board or support members 31 attached to both sides thereof around provide, when enclosed within 38, a housing for the control Mounted on the board 36 are a plurality of switches 3&3 which have been illustrated in the form of metal hinges which are entirely suitable for the purpose, although there are many equivalents thereof which could beused. One leaf of each hinge is secured to the board 36 by this invention, conswitches.

.means of screws, as indicated, and the other leaf is left free but is held in raised position, as clearly shown in Figure 6, by a compressible insulating block Mi, made, for example, of sponge rubber, which would permit of the downward movement of the upper leaves, as indicated in Figure 6, when pressure is applied thereover'to the flexible cover hinge is notched, as indicated at a space in which lies a fixed contact 4! when the board 36 as clearly shown in the contacts M are connected together to a wire 45, which is provided with a lead .46 which becomes part of a cable 34, as

' 5. Each receiver can be remotely controlled.

the automatic type. The con- 36 having framing hinge is prov be seen that the ,data which are vided with a lead 43 which is connected thereto and which extends into and forms part of the cable 34. The leads 4! are preferably anchored by some suitable form of mounting, such as the clamping plate 44 as indicated in Figure 5. The lead 46 forms a common lead for all the switches while the leads 43 comprise the individual leads for each switch. These leads would be connected to the control apparatus of the automatic radio receiver preferably situated at a point remote with respect to the control board so as to effect the proper operation thereof, all in' accordance with well known principles of radio construction and operation.

As clearly shown in Figure 4, the board is provided with alpair of upstanding brackets 3| in which a rod Ills mounted. This rod serves as a means forholding, on the top surface of the control board 30, a data sheet, pamphlet or newspaper having printed on the pages thereof, as illustrated in Figure 4 at 35, the data with respect to the various programs and program times for a particular day. The illustration in Figure 4 of the set-up of program data is taken from a widely distributed daily newspaper. When the newspaper is applied to the control board it will provided respectively for the important broadcasting stations for that area are directly above the various switches 39. The leftmost column of each area provides the different hourly and hour fraction designations for the period from 1 p. m. to midnight. Thus it will be seen at once that it is possible, for example, to tune the radio receiver to which the control board 30 is connected by simply applying pressure to the area containing the data of the desired program at a point opposite the when that program is to be broadcast. At that time it will be seen that the desired program will be immediately tuned in without the necessity on the part of the operator of knowing anything about the wavelength of transmission for that station or about the radio receiver and its adjust- I ment in order to get that program. The application of pressure as mentioned above simply closes the upper leaf of the associated hinge 39 on the associated contact ll, completing the control circuit for the receiver so as to cause it to become adjusted to the corresponding wavelength.

From the above description it will be apparent v 1. In an apparatus of the type described, the combination with a radio receiver having a tuning mechanism and a plurality of manual that the principles of this invention may be embodied in many physivertical columns of program Y particular hour 1 controls for operating said tuning mechanism to any one of a number of adjustments corresponding respectively to said manuals, of an index 7 sheet removably positioned on said manuals and having stationdesignating areas, one for each manual, whereby when pressure is applied to. the respective areas the associated manuals are actuated to operate the tuning mechanism to the corresponding wavel ngths.

2. In an apparatus of the type described, the combination with a radio receiverhaving an automatic tuning mechanism and a plurality of manual controls for operating said tuning mechanism to any one of a number of adjustments corresponding respectively to said manuals, of a replaceable program index sheet applied to said receiver so as to overlie said manuals having transmitting station program indicia impressed on the face thereof and "associated respectively with said manuals whereby when a particular manual is operated the tuning mechanism will be adjusted to the transmitting wavelength of the station designated by the particular associated areas.

3. In an apparatus as disclosed, the combination with a flexible container having a support therein, a plurality of switches mounted on said sponding transmitting station.

5. The combination with radio signalling apmulti-Inanual station selector HORTON.

whereby set- 

